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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24376798">Inhale, Exhale (Just Breathe)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShipOnTheHorizon/pseuds/ShipOnTheHorizon'>ShipOnTheHorizon</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Up In Smoke [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>9-1-1 (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Caring Eddie Diaz, Developing Relationship, Eddie POV, Firefighters, First Responders - Freeform, Happy Ending, Hurt Evan "Buck" Buckley, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, M/M, Near Death Experiences, On a Call, POV Outsider, Panic, Pre-Relationship, Pre-Slash, Protective Eddie Diaz, Still Don't Know Where It Is In The 9-1-1 Timeline, Worried Eddie Diaz, not too sad, of Buck falling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 01:07:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,758</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24376798</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShipOnTheHorizon/pseuds/ShipOnTheHorizon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>He is running forward, arm extended, before he even knows what he is doing. He runs towards the edge and tries to catch Buck’s hand but before he even gets close, he sees Buck drop.</p><p>“<i>No!</i>”</p><p>
  <b>Accompanying story to <i>Everything That I’ve Ever Known</i>, Eddie’s POV</b>
</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Up In Smoke [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1759630</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>253</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Inhale, Exhale (Just Breathe)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When they get to the scene, Eddie hears Bobby’s instruction, waiting until they have all been given orders before he runs off, with Chim next to him, towards the civilians that are sitting against the edges of the bridge, between the edge of the bridge and the fire truck.</p><p>As they walk over, he looks over each of them briefly, trying to make a quick list of priorities of injury. No one looks too injured, which is lucky in a crash of this magnitude, especially when a collapsed bridge is involved.</p><p>They’re just lucky that no one had driven over the edge.</p><p>He sees the young girl at the end of the line, and she looks alone; her eyes are stuck to the truck that Buck and Hen are stabilising, so he assumes that it’s her mom on there. She looks a similar age to Christopher, and that alone makes him sympathetic. He quickly indicates to Chim that he’s going to check on her, and then walks over. </p><p>“Hi,” he kneels down on the floor next to her and waits until she looks at him before giving her a quick smile. </p><p>He points towards the truck, “Is that your mom?”</p><p>She nods silently, and he moves to sit with his legs crossed in front of him; if you show that you are relaxed, a patient tends to mirror that.</p><p>“You don’t need to worry, because you see that guy?" He points at Buck, "He’s my friend, so he’s going to save your mom.”</p><p>She nods again, but he can see a small smile on her face this time. After a moment of them both watching Buck work to move her mom around, she allows him to check her head where she has a small cut, but other than that she seems perfectly fine.</p><p>He is putting a fun plaster on her head – she chose Iron Man – when the truck falls off the edge and Eddie’s head snaps over to look where Buck is, and physically sighs in relief when he sees him smiling, unconcerned, near the edge.</p><p>“Good timing Buckaroo,” he hears from his side. He looks over to Chim and rolls his eyes, and he hears Hen sighing from where she is walking over to the ambulance. The young girl stands up, as does Eddie, and begins to run over to her mom. </p><p>“Chim, shut up.”</p><p>Chim makes an face and puts his hand over his heart, very dramatically, before pretending to faint. It weirdly reminds him of something that Buck would do, and Eddie starts to laugh, thinking of how Chim has been spending too much time with the Buckley siblings.</p><p>He hears Buck laugh as well, and they catch eyes.</p><p>Suddenly, he notices a crack run through the area of the bridge that Buck is standing on and his heart <i>stops</i>.</p><p>He is running forward, arm extended, before he even knows what he is doing. He runs towards the edge and tries to catch Buck’s hand but before he even gets close, he sees Buck drop.</p><p>“<i>No!</i>”</p><p>Chim grabs him as he gets too close to the edge, but Eddie just pushes him away. He tries at least, as Chim just ends up having to grab him from behind and pull him backwards.</p><p>“Chim! <i>Chim</i> please, I have to <i>get</i> him!”</p><p>He watches as more and more of the concrete bridge breaks apart from the edge</p><p>“Not at the cost of your <i>own life!</i>” He hears Chim speak, and knows that he should listen but all that he can see is Buck’s surprise as the floor dropped from underneath him.</p><p>All he can see is him scrambling to grab something, <i>anything</i>, in between the breaking and twisting and cracking concrete and the panic as nothing appeared.</p><p>All he can see is him <i>dropping over the edge</i>.</p><p>He knows Bobby giving out commands, but he just kneels down on the floor. They’re all yelling into their radios, various questions and concerns, but Eddie can barely hear it. He feels blank, as if his life has fallen into silence and he doesn’t know what to do. </p><p>How is he going to tell Christopher? Maddie? </p><p>He doesn’t know how long he is sat on the floor, but he looks up when the team goes silent. They’re listening closely to the radio and Eddie scrambles of the floor in his effort to do the same.</p><p>Bobby presses the button down and says “Buck?”</p><p>They all wait and are rewarded by a cough on the other side. Eddie practically sobs with relief, “<i>Gracias a Dios.</i>” he mumbles to himself.</p><p>Chim looks towards him and waves him over, “Talk to him. Get yourself under control.”</p><p>Eddie nods quickly and picks up his own radio, pressing the button down. “Buck?”</p><p>It takes a moment, but he hears a quick ‘hey’ through the radio and pushes down the worry that the faint reply causes. “<i>OhthankGodyou’reokay</i>.” he feels as if he can’t say it fast enough, with the rapid relief that floods through him, “I thought- oh my God. I thought-”</p><p>Buck cuts him off with a deep cough, and even through the radio, it sounds wet which is severely worrying, “I’m okay Ed. Well,” he coughs again, “maybe not okay, but I’m alive.”</p><p>He and Chim look at each other and Chim picks up his own radio, “Buck, can you describe any of your injuries to me? You don’t sound great.”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah. Um, left arm hurts a lot, I think I did something to it as I- as I fell? My chest hurts a bit too, and I must’ve hit my head because I was knocked out as I, well, as I landed.”</p><p>He hears Buck reply, but Eddie turns to Bobby, “We have to get him out. The coughing doesn’t sound good <i>anyway</i> but in addition to him being knocked out? He sounds confused. He can’t be left down there alone for long."</p><p>Bobby nods and speaks directly to Buck. “Okay, you’re doing really good Buck. We’re trying to figure out a way to get to you. Is there anything else you can tell us about where you are?”</p><p>He waves one of the construction workers over and directs him to get his team to start moving the concrete.</p><p>“I don’t think I’m very deep. It’s really bright.”</p><p>Cap nods, thankful. Eddie knows how he feels, it would be much more difficult to get to him out of wherever he is at a faster pace, the deeper he was, “Okay Buck, that’s really good. It shouldn’t take long to get to you.”</p><p>“Hm, that’s good – I’m feeling a bit sleepy Cap.”</p><p>Each of them shows a similar reaction to that, Bobby actually swears which has the effect of making both Chim and Hen pale, but Eddie isn’t surprised. Bobby is like a father to Buck, after all the two have been through together – he knows that Bobby still feels guilt about the truck being blown up, and it means that he reacts a bit more irrationally to anything that Buck is involved in.</p><p>As the three start giving commands so that they can get him out as fast as they can, Eddie takes it upon himself to try and keep him awake as long as possible.</p><p>He tries to keep himself unemotional, but he knows his voice wavers as he says “Hey Buck.”</p><p>“Hey Eddie.” He sounds sleepy, and that alone makes him worried, but the pained sound that comes through the radio seconds later sharpens that worry further.</p><p>He hears a deep breath from Buck, and Eddie takes the moment to do the same, albeit slightly quieter, assuming that he’s trying to breath through the pain, “That certainly woke me up a bit.”</p><p>Eddie laughs, but he knows it comes out differently. His thoughts are affirmed when he hears Buck mutter to Eddie or himself, “I like your other laugh better. The laugh where you sound fond and so <i>so</i> beautiful.”</p><p>Despite the situation, Eddie flushes, “That’s nice of you Buck, but you’re the beautiful one.”</p><p>“Said that out loud, huh?”</p><p>He smiles, “Yeah man, yeah you did.” It wasn’t good to see that Buck didn’t have a full control over what he was saying, but the faint amusement in his voice meant that Buck was still somewhat awake. </p><p>The silence that follows, on the other hand, concerns him.</p><p>“Buck?”</p><p>No reply.</p><p>“<i>Buck!</i></p><p>He continues yelling his name but realises he is letting his panic overcome him. He said his arm was hurting so he may be unable to get to his radio, or it may be exhaustion. It’s unlikely that Buck <i>has</i> passed out, but even if the possibility is there he keeps talking to him.</p><p>“Buck, you have to stay awake, okay? Even if you can’t reply.”</p><p>As he speaks, he sees Bobby giving him a quick nod. They’re getting closer, thank God. He isn’t sure what to say, has never really been in the situation he is in, so he tried to remind Buck of his reasons to stay.</p><p>“Do you remember yesterday Buck?” </p><p>It’s the first thing that comes to mind when trying to remind Buck of what, or <i>who</i>, he has, waiting outside of the debris he is trapped in.</p><p>When he asked him out the day before, he had never even thought that that day could be their last together, their last day in which they can finally do what they have both been thinking of for months, maybe years; since the day they met and were trapped together in an ambulance that could’ve exploded. </p><p>It wasn’t easy, making the choice to take the next step, but during their last shift, he had known that it was time. He was ready, Buck was ready, and he knew that after everything that had happened to them both over the past few years, they deserved to be what they needed to be.</p><p>Buck’s smile, alone, when he said yes, would never be forgotten.</p><p>He continues, “You have to stay awake for that Buck. Stay awake for the date, and everything that comes after okay?” He takes a breath, “Stay awake for Christopher, and for Maddie, and for your team, and for <i>me</i>. Please, baby, please just <i>stay awake for me.</i>”</p><p>He keeps talking, about what type of date he wants to take him on, where they can take Chris on the weekend, what they’re next shift is going to look like. He keeps talking and talking and talking.</p><p>Bobby gives him a thumbs up.</p><p>He breaths.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Oops. Time to write 8 books at once!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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